


Darkness

by littlesenhorita



Series: Stray Kids Cats adventures [11]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Beaches, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, But not that much, Cat Hybrid Hwang Hyunjin, Cat Hybrid Lee Felix (Stray Kids), Cat Hybrid Lee Know, Cat/Human Hybrids, Changbin is sad :(, Crying, Deep Conversations, Dreams and Nightmares, Fear of Death, Fights, Flashbacks, Fox Hybrid Yang Jeongin | I.N, Friendship, Guns, Gunshot Wounds, Hospitalization, Hospitals, Human Bang Chan, Human Changbin, Human Han Jisung, Hwang Hyunjin is a Sweetheart, Hybrid Yang Jeongin | I.N, Hybrids, Hyunjin is brave, Hyunjin's past returns :(, Kidnapping, Kissing, M/M, Matter of Life and Death, Men Crying, Mentions of Blood, PLEASE YOU NEED TO READ THE WARNING AT THE NOTES AT THE BEGINNING, Pets, Police, Sad with a Happy Ending, Seo Changbin is a sweetheart, Shooting Guns, Surgery, all the kitties are good friends, alternative universe - Pets, and the owners too, but this will have a happy end, changbin is the owner, everything is fine at the end!, hyunjin is the cat, i'm sorry i wrote too much crying scenes, owners, sad thoughts, they all are good friends, they cry a lot at chapter two
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-29
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:34:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 18,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23910133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlesenhorita/pseuds/littlesenhorita
Summary: Hyunjin and Changbin thought that everything was finally okay. They thought. But it wasn't."Life has been easy with them during the past few months, and Changbin is happy about it. He has a lover now, a partner to share his life and dreams and nothing is better than that but... Changbin can feel that something is out of place. When he watches his kitten so excited and happy from a distance like he’s doing right now at the bookshop, Changbin can feel anxiety crawling his back, screwing up his happiness while fear takes place at his heart.It’s like something is trying to warn him. But from what? What can possibly hurt them?"
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Felix, Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Hwang Hyunjin/Seo Changbin
Series: Stray Kids Cats adventures [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1638229
Comments: 13
Kudos: 156





	1. these kinds of darkness

**Author's Note:**

> Hello loves!
> 
> I'm back with another Changjin adventure. This one has 2 chapters! I hope you guys like it. Since it started to get really long, I decided to divide this adventure, so, don't worry, I'm already writing chapter two and planning on publishing it soon.
> 
> !!! WARNINGS !!!
> 
> 1) This has mentions of fighting, blood and some action. I didn't write any graphic scene, but it has a few appearances of people fighting and police stuff. Be aware of that. I promise that it's nothing extreme, btw, just mentions.
> 
> 2) Hyunjin has nightmares as well, but I didn't describe them detailed and it doesn't have any panic or anxiety attack in this fanfic.
> 
> 3) There are some flashbacks in the middle of the text, they're in italic. Any of the flashbacks have a chronological line, all the events are from different times in the past, not necessarily connected by dates, in order. They're all connected by the feelings that they convey.
> 
> 4) Please, I'll ask you to read the notes at the end!
> 
> I'm not a native English speaker, so, please, excuse the possible mistakes made during the text, I tried my best!
> 
> What I wrote here is not how I see the members or anything, I fully respect them. Please, be aware that this is only fanfic, nothing more than that.

**_Hyunjin_ **

Nightmares still haunted Hyunjin’s dreams.

Most of his nights were immersed in tranquil darkness, a calm feeling of being suspended in the air, without any worries. Sometimes he dreamed about good things, but there were some nights that his dreams were a confusing storm of fear and despair. His mind tricked him with scenes of his bloody past and things that he was afraid to happen, most of them related to his biggest fear that was losing Changbin, being separated from him.

This night the nightmare wasn’t merciful at all with the kitten. It was a confusing chain of events that ended up with Hyunjin and Changbin separated from each other in the cruellest way. There were fighting, blood and a lot of tears, guns and a shot at Changbin’s back.

Hyunjin woke up in the middle of the night drowning in sweat and glued to Changbin almost like his life depended on how close he could get to his lover. The kitten tried to ease his breathing in the way his doctor taught him and took deep breaths, holding the air and slowly counting to ten and then releasing the air inside the lungs. He did that a few times while silently watching how Changbin’s chest rose and fall at a steady rhythm. He reached for Changbin’s chest and placed a hand there, feeling the steady beating of the heart under his fingers, a safe and warm sensation grounding his soul and agitated mind.

Changbin turned into Hyunjin’s anchor, his world, his everything. Hyunjin is sure that he wouldn’t be able to survive if ever lost his lover.

Sometimes the kitten feels that all the things that happened to him after meeting Changbin weren’t true, because his current life is so good that it almost feels like a wonderful dream. He’s afraid that one day he’s going to wake up and realise that he’s still at the fighting ring all over again, surrounded by suffering and darkness…The only thing that holds Hyunjin to this current reality full of happiness and love is Changbin’s arms around him, his loving touches and kisses, the gentle scent of roses that fills up the bedroom at night. Doesn’t matter where they are, with who and what they’re doing if Hyunjin is with Changbin, he’s happy and at home.

After calming down his mind and breathing, Hyunjin is able to fall asleep again but the night passed by with just a dark and heavy sleep.

He woke up still curled up at one side of Changbin’s body, his long legs wrapped at his owner’s waist, face buried at Changbin’s neck and a nice blanket above their sleeping bodies. Changbin’s scent is all over the place, roses with tiny notes of chocolate overflowing Hyunjin’s senses. It feels nice and cosy, so the kitten takes a deep breath to just inhale all that scent and let it reverberate inside him.

“Hm…” Changbin mumbles while sleeping and Hyunjin just looks at him, feeling nothing but love towards his owner. _No, his lover._

The kitten hugs Changbin tightly and gives him a gentle kiss at one cheek. He can’t express how much he’s grateful, how much he loves him... Well, there was a way to express that but Changbin was pretty much embarrassed to think about it or doing anything with Hyunjin, so the kitten was waiting for his lover to feel ready. 

When Hyunjin thinks about how much Changbin is careful and loving, the way he always talks about Hyunjin’s approaching Heat, like it was a big event and that he wanted to make sure that the kitten feels comfortable with everything… the pink cheeks, the confused eyes, the way Changbin’s voice always cracks with embarrassment… A soft smile spreads the kitten’s lips and Hyunjin can’t hold the urge to kiss Changbin again, snuggling at his neck right after.

“I can’t get used to it…” Changbin’s hoarse voice echoes and Hyunjins giggles.

“What?” Hyunjin can’t hide the way he always feels happy during mornings. The kitten discovered that he wasn’t a morning person, but waking up with Changbin by his side always makes him feel happy and energetic.

“Waking up with you by my side” Changbin answers and moves in the bed, slowly opening his eyes. Hyunjin watches in silence while his lover tries to push sleepiness away, letting out a huge yawl and taking a deep breath right after. When Changbin finally realises how Hyunjin is glued to him, a lazy smile makes its appearance and Changbin looks really cute while turning to Hyunjin and kissing him softly in the lips.

“Good morning, Binnie,” Hyunjin says, kissing back.

The kiss is slow and not that deep, just their lips pressing together with the usual laziness of the morning. That kind of kiss is one of Hyunjin’s favourites. There’s a moment of silence after they part from each other and then a strong hand pulls Hyunjin to a warm hug, making the kitten smile wider.

“Morning” Changbin gently whispers against Hyunjin’s lips and kisses him again, eyes still closed. It’s a quicker kiss and Hyunjin whines, asking for another slow kiss. Changbin smiles and opens his eyes, looking at the kitten's pout.

"You're getting impatient," he says, giggling.

"And you're too careful" Hyunjin bites back, but it's only a joke. They stay in silence for a little while, feeling each other’s warmth, the way their bodies perfectly fit together, until Changbin moves at the bed.

"What time is it?" He asks, sitting at the mattress.

“I don’t know, I didn’t check,” Hyunjin says, rubbing his eyes to ward off sleep. The kitten looks at Changbin that gets out of the bed, his eyes wandering through Changbin’s silhouette, drinking at the vision of his lover with just a black tank top and navy blue boxer shorts, searching for the phone at the nightstand. Hyunjin stretches his long arms and legs, meowing with content.

“It’s almost eleven in the morning,” Changbin says.

“That’s fine, it’s Saturday. We don’t need to wake up early, don’t we?” Hyunjin sits at the bed, his greyish tail happily dancing in the air behind him.

“Yeah, but it’s not good to stay in the bed the whole day,” Changbin says among smiles.

“We can exchange the bed for the couch, then!” Hyunjin says, purring while hugging one of the pillows placed at the bed.

Changbin smiles again and Hyunjin can feel his heart stop beating.

“Come, let’s get some breakfast”.

They’re together for almost six months now and Hyunjin already got used to their routine and the comfortable life that they have together.

Hyunjin is always learning new things too, having new experiences and discovering things about himself that he never thought that he had inside him. He enjoys music as much as Changbin but in a different way. He likes to dance to it. Hyunjin likes to sing as well, but he is too shy about it so he only sings when he’s alone at home. Changbin is a musician, a talented producer and Hyunjin don’t want to bother his lover with his out of tune voice.

The kitten likes to cuddle as well. A lot. That’s probably because he wasn’t able to feel loved or be caressed during his whole life until being found by Changbin, but Hyunjin doesn’t care. He’s always throwing his legs above Changbin’s when he has the chance, kissing him or just hugging him at random moments, placing his chin above Changbin’s shoulders, secretly enjoying how their bodies perfectly fit together.

His friends are really nice as well. Since the start, Hyunjin thought that Felix was the kindest kitten that he ever met and it was actually true. Felix was kind, funny and excited about everything. The kitty helped Hyunjin with the internet thing and showed him a lot of funny games, apps and gave him a lot of series and movies recommendations. Felix was a good listener too, always reassuring Hyunjin that he was a good friend and giving him advice about daily life.

Minho was different. While Felix was a little pink ball of excitement, always shining and making Hyunjin happy, Minho was the constant air breeze, a warm presence that makes Hyunjin feel safe. Minho is older and more experienced so he always listens to Hyunjin and gives him deeper advice about his worries. Minho helped Hyunjin to discover his dance hobby too, encouraging the younger kitten to do what made him happy. Minho was like an older brother and Hyunjin really enjoys that feeling.

His relationship with Chris and Jisung is really good, too. Hyunjin noticed pretty soon how the duo makes Changbin happy and that actually makes him really happy too. Chris is always smiling to Hyunjin, listening to the kitten and talking about random things with him, while Jisung always sends him new food recipes and sometimes listens to his worries, too. It’s nice to feel like you’re a part of a family and all his friends are wonderful to him.

As for Changbin, he is the best part of Hyunjin's new life. He’s better than Hyunjin could ever wish, always passionate, always surprising him with gifts and taking him out to dinner or a date. Hyunjin went to a lot of restaurants by now, tried a lot of different kind of foods, watched a lot of movies and visited many fun places. Changbin is gentle and warm, showing his love all the time.

Hyunjin can say, for sure, that he’s happy now. The kitten felt happiness since the start, since that night when Changbin hugged him for the first time while he cried his eyes out, but after months of living his new life with his lover and friends, he can assure that his past doesn’t haunt him anymore and that he feels safe. Apart from his nightmares, everything is fine.

“Do you want to stay at home today? Or wants to go out?” Changbin asks, pouring milk into a huge glass in front of Hyunjin. The kitten attacks the glass at the moment Changbin finishes filling it, drinking everything. Changbin smiles and fills the glass again with more milk after Hyunjin finishes drinking it.

Hyunjin purrs in content and just stays in silence, thinking about what he wants. Usually, he would prefer to stay at home, but there was a book that Minho recommended to him during the week and he wanted to look for it at the bookstore.

“Can we go to the bookstore? I want to search for a book.” Hyunjin says, watching Changbin preparing his everyday breakfast: a vitamin with a lot of milk and fruits mixed together at the blender.

“Yes, of course, Jinnie” Changbin answers with a big smile, “we can watch something as well, at the cinema. What do you think?”

“Yes!” Hyunjin happily answers. He jumps out of his chair and hugs Changbin from behind, who fakes annoyance and laughs when the kitten kisses his pink cheeks.

They have breakfast in the living room, holding a nice conversation about music and some events that happened during the week.

Soon they’re inside the cab, heading downtown. It’s Saturday, so it’s a bit crowded with lots of people and tourists. All shops are open, street vendors are trying to sell their products and little booths spread through the street with displayed handicraft above tiny tables are everywhere. Hyunjin likes that, he enjoys being surrounded by life and movement and most importantly, he enjoys the smile that illuminates Changbin’s face when he watches the street movement.

Their hands are glued to each other, both walking without separate their palms. It’s a good feeling and Hyunjin likes the safety of the gesture, always touching Changbin in some way.

"There! The bookstore!" Hyunjin points to a little white shop with a lot of books displayed on the showcase, he already can feel excitement rushing through his veins, his cat ears turning into the direction of the bookshop and grey tail happily wiggling in the air behind him.

It’s a simple shop but at the same time is modern and Hyunjin drags Changbin through the crowded street into the bookshop direction. They enter the place and Hyunjins runs to the shop owner asking for the book, all smiles towards the woman.

***

**_Changbin_ **

Changbin is aware of Hyunjin’s nightmares.

He usually wakes up in the middle of the night, watching in silence while the kitten cries seconds before waking up and hugging him tightly. Changbin never said a word about it, only letting his kitten hug him after everything ends and comforting Hyunjin in silence.

They’re together for some time now and Changbin learned that the best thing that he can do for his kitten when those nightmares come is staying in silence and let Hyunjin find comfort inside his arms. When morning rises, Hyunjin never says a word about it, Changbin even suspects that the kitten doesn’t know that he is usually already woken up before Hyunjin himself wakens from the bad dreams. He doesn’t want to talk about it too, mostly because he can clearly see how much the nightmares frighten the kitten, so Changbin never talks about it too. He just does his best to comfort his lover.

Life has been easy with them during the past few months, and Changbin is happy about it. He has a lover now, a partner to share his life and dreams and nothing is better than that but... Changbin can feel that something is out of place. When he watches his kitten so excited and happy from a distance like he’s doing right now at the bookshop, Changbin can feel anxiety crawling his back, screwing up his happiness while fear takes place at his heart.

It’s like something is trying to warn him. But from what? What can possibly hurt them?

Hyunjin’s past can’t reach them, Changbin heard from the police that those men that imprisoned and abused his lovely kitten were finally behind bars. Hyunjin’s testimony was crucial for the case but the authority kept the kitten’s identity in secret, as an anonymous victim. Everything was fine, now. Right?

“Binnie, Binnie, I found it!” Hyunjin called him and Changbin leaves the book that he was mindlessly flipping through the pages and walks towards his kitten, forcing a smile and pushing away his worries.

Everything is fine. There’s nothing to worry about, they’re safe and happy.

Changbin crosses the place that’s a bit crowded too, saying a lot of “excuses me” until he finally reaches his kitten. Hyunjin’s eyes are sparkling and he holds a fantasy book in his hands with a colourful cover. Changbin doesn’t think twice and buys the entire series for his kitty, waving all Hyunjin’s protests away.

They leave the bookstore with a heavy eco bag with six books inside it, talking about having lunch at a good Italian restaurant and Changbin no longer feels anxiety choking his heart, just enjoying the sunny Saturday with his kitty.

***

A silent man is sitting at one of the little round tables inside the café located in front of the white bookstore. His eyes don’t leave Changbin and Hyunjin, not until they disappear at the street corner. He makes a quick call and leaves the café right after, calmly walking in the same direction that the couple went.

***

**_Changbin_ **

“No”, that’s all that Chris says.

“Please, Chris! Pretty please!” Hyunjin begs with big round eyes and Changbin knows that if he were Chris instead, he would have already given up. But Chris is decided and apparently, Hyunjin doesn’t have a chance.

The kitten turns and looks at Changbin with sad eyes and a cute pout in the lips asking for help and Changbin can clearly hear _“help me, Binnie!”_ in his mind. He can’t resist and just does exactly what is asked.

“Com' on, Chris, is just one night. We’ll take good care of Felix” Changbin tries and Chris looks at him, eyebrows lifted and a betrayed look in his eyes.

“I can’t believe that you’re agreeing with this, Changbin!”

“We can go with them and Felix can come to my house, right after. You’re going to have him back by the morning, I give you my word” Changbin tries to be as persuasive as he can, tries to make his kitten’s wish come true. He understands Chris, of course. The idea of not having Hyunjin by his side at the bed, even if it’s for one night, makes him feel uneasy as well but Hyunjin and Felix are friends, they like to be around each other and… well, this would happen sooner or later.

Felix is a curious kitty and Hyunjin never lived a full life before. They’re good friends and both of them are excited about trying new things, having new experiences. This is a deadly combination.

Chris closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. Changbin takes this opportunity and just grabs one of his kitten’s hands and pulls him closer. Felix is silently waiting, sitting beside Chris and looking at his owner with the same big round sparkly eyes that Hyunjin had seconds before.

Changbin thinks that this is probably something common to all the hybrid cats in the world. Those big round sparkly eyes all cute and soft exists only for melt the owner’s heart. Changbin can feel his poor heart giving up too, looking at Felix pleading expression.

After considering the situation for some minutes, Chris finally opens his eyes and looks at his kitty. Felix stares back at his owner and Changbin can’t help but smile at the fact that this pink kitten can always have what he wants from Chris, doesn’t matter if Chris is against it at first, Felix can convince his owner with just one look.

“Fine, okay!” Chris says with a puff and suddenly Hyunjin and Felix are all happiness, jumping at the living room from Changbin’s house and Chris just sighs in response, while Changbin laughs and enjoys the moment.

Hyunjin and Changbin invited Chris and Felix for dinner that night and Changbin still doesn’t know how the subject popped out in their conversation but he suspects that the kittens probably had everything planned already and they just took the opportunity to ask their owners at the dinner.

A nightclub. The kittens wanted to go out to a nightclub.

Changbin doesn’t have any idea of where that came from but apparently, they wanted to try and go together. Of course, he and Chris would never let their kitties go out alone to that kind of place, mostly because of the fact that it would be really dangerous for a pair of hybrid cats, principally a cute pair of beautiful cats, going there all by themselves. Knowing that there are dangerous people that kidnap hybrids to force them to fight against each other didn’t help at all, too.

“We’ll need to keep a close eye on them,” Chris says, while he and Changbin wait for their kittens to prepare themselves and change clothes. Felix is already dressed really pretty in a black ripped jeans, a white t-shirt beneath a cream jacket with beautiful silver earrings and a pair of chokers, one black and the other silver. When he was going up the stairs, following Hyunjin into their bedroom direction on the second floor, Felix said that he would only put some makeup and style his hair but Changbin knew that Felix wanted to help Hyunjin to dress up and make the taller kitten looks good. Changbin wasn’t against it, of course, he just… he wasn’t prepared to see Hyunjin on sexy clothes.

Chris is all dressed up in black as always, with a black leather jacket, jeans and a plain t-shirt. Changbin didn’t choose anything particular, he ended picking up a silky black shirt and some navy blue jeans. He didn’t want to be the centre of the attention, so he was okay with just that.

Hyunjin, however, is stunning. When he calls Changbin from the stairs, his voice is soft, almost a whisper and Changbin turns to its direction only to have his heart ripped out of his chest. He can’t feel any beating or listen to any sort of noise because he can only see and hear Hyunjin in his mind, his kitten, his lover and friend and right now he is… he’s so…

“Okay, I think that it was definitely a success,” Felix says, running to Chris.

Changbin doesn’t pay much attention, he just stares at Hyunjin, standing still close to the end of the stair. The kitten is dressed in an emerald shirt, black leather pants and a lot of black belts. There are two belts around his hips, a different set of belts holding his chest and abdomen, Hyunjin’s hair looks damp but at the same time it’s not, his eyes are painted with smokey brown eyeshadow and his lips are impossibly red and… Oh my God, Changbin thinks that he’s probably dead. He’s dying from how handsome Hyunjin really is, how good he looks, so different from the usual Hyunjin with hoodies and sweatpants.

_Fuck._

“You didn’t like it?” Hyunjin asks, carefully walking towards Changbin at the living room and he can feel the kitten’s perfume, it’s an expensive one that Changbin bought to Hyunjin a few weeks ago and…

“W-what-t?” Changbin tries, he really tries to talk something but his brain just erased every capacity of form words and phrases and he can’t-

“You look really good. I think Changbin is just trying to process that, his brain stopped working,” Chris says with a large smile in his face and Felix laughs, holding his owner’s arm.

Hyunjin’s big sparkling eyes stares at Changbin’s soul and he can’t think on anything else than kissing his kitten, his pretty and tall kitten, and-

“You can kiss me if you want, you know?” Hyunjin shyly says it’s like he can guess Changbin’s thoughts. He takes a step closer and Changbin’s body just moves. It just moves for itself without warning Changbin and suddenly he can feel Hyunjin’s lips against his, the gloss against his dry lips, the strawberry taste and oh fuck Hyunjin’s hair feels like silk running through Changbin’s fingers and all that he can think is _Hyunjin’s hands touching his arms, his back, the soft skin of his nape, pulling him closer, their bodies fitting together perfectly once again, Hyunjin’s soft breath against his lips, the way Hyunjin meows when Changbin-_

“Hu-hum” Changbin hear a fake cough not far away from them and it’s really difficult to part from Hyunjin, but when they separate from each other all that Changbin can see is Hyunjin’s soft smile and the light flush that paints the kitten’s cheeks.

“It was a good idea that we decided to bring the gloss with us!” Felix happily says and takes one of Hyunjin’s hands, “Let’s go! You can kiss Jinnie as much as you want when we arrive at the nightclub!”

And, suddenly, a breathless Changbin and a smiley Chris are left behind at the living room, the two kittens excitedly calling for a cab at the street.

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

“Harness?” The kitten asks his friend, touching the belts that evolve his chest and waist.

“Yes! Isn’t it cool?” Felix answers, smiling widely.

Hyunjin doesn’t know much about it, but it looks good on him and Changbin liked too, so he was fine with all those belts around him. And knowing that he has so much power over Changbin with just a slight change on his looks… Hyunjin liked that.

“Where did you learn about this kind of clothing? I didn’t even know that it existed!” Hyunjin asks, trying not to shout at Felix’s ears, but the music is so loud that he can’t avoid screaming at the end of the phrase.

Even among the darkness that surrounds them, Hyunjin can clearly see the smile that spreads Felix’s lips. It’s a different smile, one that’s wide and full of unsaid things and Hyunjin doesn’t understand it. He wants to ask Felix what is it, but he doesn’t have the chance: Changbin and Chris are back from the bar, holding colourful glasses, full of alcoholic drinks, as well as a few bottles of beer.

The place is noisy and dark, with a lot of neon lights. Hyunjin feels a little uneasy here, but it is because he doesn’t have a good relationship with darkness, most of his life he spent inside a cage in the dark. He learned that there was different types of darkness and some of them can be really nice and comfy, like the darkness that falls at night when Hyunjin hugs Changbin at their bed, underneath the covers. There was the sad and empty darkness that he lived in from most of his life and there was… this darkness. Noisy. Crowded. Alcoholic. Fuzzy. Loud.

“Come Jinnie! Let’s dance!” Felix reaches out for Hyunjin and takes his hand. Hyunjin gets up, looking at Changbin that just smiles back at him, mimicking a “go! go!” to the kitten.

They leave Chris and Changbin behind, their owners sitting at a table by the corner of the nightclub, close to the bar. Felix is really excited and is clearly having so much fun that it encourages Hyunjin to do the same as his friend, letting go of the uneasy feeling that keeps crawling the back of his mind.

Hyunjin knows this kind of music. Changbin already taught him about it. It’s called Techno, he thinks, and it’s full of bassy beats, with some touches of distorted melodies here and there, really repetitive. It’s really different from what Hyunjin is used to dance to, but it’s not that bad, it’s just… something that’s out of his routine.

Felix starts to move to the beat as soon as they arrive at the dancefloor and Hyunjin just watches his friend for a few seconds, looking around them and noticing the way others move their bodies. The kitten feels a little lost, but soon he starts moving as well, keeping himself close to Felix.

After a few minutes, the Techno song begins to change and soon Trap music starts playing, the DJ jumps at the stage and everyone screams. Everything is colourful, vibrant, and Hyunjin doesn’t feel uneasy anymore. He feels light, happy, although he didn’t drink anything alcoholic, he just feels a tingling sensation all over his body. His sharp eyes catch Felix’s smiling figure before him and Hyunjin just pull his friend closer, grabbing his hand and moving with the music. Felix smiles back at Hyunjin, his hands firmly gripping at Hyunjin’s, his pink hair jumping and glowing in the dark.

They dance for a little while until Felix feels thirsty. Both kittens leave the dancefloor and run back to their owners.

“... Yeah, but I think that a lo-fi beat would-” Chris is talking (well, screaming) to Changbin when the kittens arrive and his eyes light up with love when Felix jumps at him, giggling.

“Having fun?” He asks to both of them, holding a green glass bottle of beer and Felix kisses his cheeks.

“So much! It’s so fun and Jinnie is such a good dancer!” Felix answers while sitting at Chris’ lap and Hyunjin just sits by Changbin’s side, placing his chin at his owner’s shoulder. Felix and Chris start a conversation about the possibility of Felix ordering something stronger than just one beer for him to drink so Hyunjin takes the break to just snuggle at Changbin and rest his tired body while drinking at his water.

“Feeling better?” Changbin asks him, lips close to the kitten’s ears. Hyunjin feels a shiver running through his back, Changbin’s voice is low and different, so different…

“Yes…” Hyunjin answers, throwing his legs over Changbin’s thighs. He likes that feeling and he likes the way Changbin’s cheeks are pink from the alcohol that he’s been drinking.

Changbin takes one of Hyunjin’s knees and lifts it up, pulling it close to his chest.

“You looked so good back there…” Changbin says with the same voice tone and Hyunjin suddenly realises that probably the alcohol is affecting his owner more than he thought because the chocolate scent is all over the place around Changbin, with bitter tones and it’s scenting dangerously close to chocolate liquor.

“How many beers did you drink, Binnie?” Hyunjin softly asks, but Changbin waves at him.

“Not so many”

“Three” Chris answers from the other side of the table, smiling. Felix is still sitting at his lap, ordering some colourful drink from the waiter.

Hyunjin smiles. That’s why Changbin never drinks more than one glass of wine when they have dinner, or why they never have beers or alcoholic drink at home. Changbin’s tolerance is low and Hyunjin suddenly enjoys too much that information. He looks at Changbin and smiles, placing a gentle hand at one of Changbin’s hot cheeks.

“You’re so cute!” He says and leaves a quick kiss at Changbin’s lips, who smiles and lifts a hand, playing with Hyunjin’s cat ears.

“You’re cuter!” He says and Chris laughs from across the table.

“I think that we should go, Changbin is starting to get too drunk for this” Chris comments and Felix whines at that, still sitting at Chris' lap, denying vigorously.

“No, no! Let's stay for another hour or two, I really liked this place!”

Hyunjin giggles and feels Changbin’s arms around his waist.

“You smell so good…” Changbin says and Hyunjin can’t help another giggle.

“I think that’s better if we call out for tonight, Lix! We can come another night” Hyunjin says, hugging Changbin tight and making his owner rest his head at his shoulder.

Felix’s sparkling eyes look at Hyunjin and travels to Chris right after. The kitty just silently nods and they soon start to sort things to leave the nightclub. Chris insists on paying for everything but Hyunjin doesn’t let him. The kitten knows were Changbin keep his card and helps with the bill, while Felix takes care of the drunken Changbin.

They’re outside of the building when everything happens. It’s so fast and so sudden that none of them has the time to process what’s really happening until it's too late.

Changbin is mumbling something about how Hyunjin looks good in green, while Chris laughs and Felix watches him with a big smile in the face. They’re waiting for the cab to arrive when a black van suddenly stops in front of them, too close from the kittens.

A big man with a black mask and cap opens the door and sticks his arms out. Hyunjin feels harsh hands grabbing at his cat ears and pulling him while another man runs for Felix, from inside the van. Changbin is pushed to the floor and Chris doesn’t have time to process everything, he just grabs Felix’s waist with every strength that he has inside him in those few seconds. Changbin tries to get up, but he’s drunk, he doesn’t have full control of his body, and Hyunjin knows, _he knows_ that Changbin will be devastated after this.

But everything is happening too fast and Hyunjin needs to make a quick decision. 

Hyunjin is already inside the van, strong arms trying to immobilize him and he can hear Felix’s and Chris’ screams of despair. The kitten looks at Changbin that’s trying to get to him and deep down the fear and the panic that Hyunjin is feeling, he knows what comes next. He’s already used to this life. But Felix is not.

He can’t let Felix experience darkness, the kitten would die in the first days. So Hyunjin does his best, he lets his instincts move his body as he used to when he fought in the rings.

The kitten makes a quick move and slips out of the arms that tries do choke him and he kicks the man that’s grabbing Felix’s arms in the middle of his legs. The man cries from pain and lets go of Felix’s arms. Hyunjin tries to reach for the door but it’s dragged deeper inside the van and the only thing he can hear is the sound of his claws scratching the metal door while Chris takes Felix in his arms and looks at Hyunjin with big glossy and scared eyes. Hyunjin tries to say something, but he can’t. He just stares back at Chris.

The van door closes just when Changbin is finally standing and moving towards Hyunjin, screaming and sticking his arms in the air. Hyunjin feels his heart that breaks again and then...

Then, there’s darkness.

***

_Hyunjin is laid at their bed, watching some series that Changbin doesn’t know about. He can’t understand what’s happening in the series, but he enjoys that feeling. He likes to watch Hyunjin smile and listen to his giggles when something funny happens._

_The only light in the room comes from the TV and Hyunjin’s expression is happy. The kitten is in his arms, curled around him, head at his shoulder._

_“You like this series that much?” Changbin asks, caressing the kitten’s back._

_“Yes,” He says, smiling._

_Changbin doesn’t say anything more. He just enjoys Hyunjin’s presence, his company._

_These moments are precious and Changbin just wants to enjoy everything about them, feeling how gentle Hyunjin touches are in his arms, hearing the kitten’s steady breathing, feeling the way their legs fit together so perfectly at the mattress, which makes Changbin thinks if Hyunjin was made for him. Only him._

***

**_Changbin_ **

The police station is too bright. Too much light for Changbin to handle. His eyes are closed and he can’t talk. He just can’t talk.

Chris’ voice echoes in his mind, as well as Felix’s. They’re explaining to the policeman what happened since Changbin can’t really talk.

He saved Felix. _He saved Felix._

He didn't think of himself, he just saved Felix.

But Changbin can’t be happy about it. He can’t feel anything rather than just a huge hole, a void in his heart, mixed with guilty and… nothing.

Nothing.

***

_He feels the same sting in his heart, a soft pinch at the back of his consciousness. It started to bother him more often during the past weeks. It always comes by the morning, after those horrible nightmares that he has during the night._

_“It’s nothing,” he says, more to himself, “nothing. Everything is alright”._

_“What, Jinnie?” Changbin’s voice echoes at the kitchen. He just got out of the shower and his hair is damp, the rose scent becoming soft and almost sweet. His cheeks are flushed from the hot water and Hyunjin loves that, he loves Changbin by the morning. He’s always soft and cuddly and that’s the best Changbin._

_Hyunjin smiles._

_“Nothing, Binnie.”_

_Nothing. It’s nothing._

_He needs to push back all those thoughts and fears away, to actually enjoy the calm routine that he has with Changbin. Something keeps telling him that this is just the calm before the storm, but Hyunjin denies and fights against those thoughts every time they come out of the cage inside his mind._

_“Hm, pancakes!” Changbin says, hugging Hyunjin from behind. The kitten smiles and nods._

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

“He’s the best,” one man says while looking at another one, expectantly. The other looks at Hyunjin that’s curled up around himself inside the cage, far away from the bars.

“He used to be the best,” the second man says, smoking while looking at Hyunjin with sharp eyes, “He will need to be trained again”.

And that’s all. They leave and Hyunjin doesn’t move an inch until he doesn’t hear any more steps.

He feels cold and scared. Somehow, this darkness is wet and cold, worst than the other one. At least in the other, he had a blanket, a rusty and thin blanket to cover his body, but in this one… there’s nothing. Not even food. Only wet and cold metal.

Hyunjin doesn’t know for how long he’s here, but he’s been inside that cage from probably many hours. He’s hungry too. Sad. He feels his soul shrinking again, all the happiness and hopes that inflated his heart are now slipping away through that iron bars before him.

At least, Felix is not with him. He’s safe, with Chris. And Changbin.

Changbin.

He probably feels really bad. Guilty. Sad. Did he cry too much? Hyunjin hopes not. He wants Changbin to stay safe at his home, to turn back to what he used to be before finding Hyunjin. The kitten misses the rose and chocolate scent. Changbin’s arms and kisses. His silly laugh. The way he hugged him beneath the covers, to listen to his steady breathing in the dark...

“You’re crying” a soft voice comes from the dark, “don’t cry”.

Hyunjin flinches at the sound while his heart runs a marathon inside his chest.

“W-who-… who’s there?” Hyunjin says and then, two little gold eyes appear in the darkness, from the cage beside his.

“Hi” the gold eyes wink and Hyunjin forces his own sight to adjust to the darkness. He didn’t needed that ability when he was with Changbin, the darkness from Changbin’s house were lighter from this one, so he never needed to adjust his sight to see what was behind him back in the house. But here, where darkness is thicker, wetter and colder, he needs to make use of all his abilities. And what he sees, breaks his heart again.

It’s a little fox. They’re rare, but they exist. Fox hybrids used to live in nature but with time, they became less recurrent and now they’re really rare. Foxes are known for being smart and playful, they get along really good with children and other hybrids as well.

Hyunjin only saw one fox hybrid in his life, when he was the best fighter at the other fighting ring. The fox was so gentle and friendly… it died in one week.

“Hi” Hyunjin answers and tiny hands grab at the iron bars from the cage beside his, while a curious little face makes its appearance.

“Oh, finally! My name is Jeongin! What’s yours?” The little gold eyes sparkle and Hyunjin feels all the pieces from his heart sinking down at the sea of despair that he’s already drowned.

“Hyunjin” He quietly answers. The fox looks young… and lively. He has never been to a place like this, Hyunjin can clearly see at the fox’s eyes.

“The others don’t want to talk with me, I was so lonely” a cute pout shapes the fox’s lips.

“They’re probably tired” and sad, Hyunjin wants to say, but he keeps quiet.

Jeongin’s expression suddenly falls.

“I know. They all come back bleeding and crying. I hate this place.”

“Do you know where we are?”

“I don’t know. But it’s a bad place, I guess”.

“Yes… It is”.

***

_Changbin loves Hyunjin’s lips. And he loves, even more, the sounds that the kitten does when they kiss._

_Hyunjin always meows and wraps his grey tail around Changbin’s small back while kissing, his fingers gently tracing his arms and the satisfied sighs that the kitten lets out are wonderful. Changbin loves that._

_“When can we sleep together?” Hyunjin asks when they part from each other. His voice is almost a whisper but it’s sufficient to send a shiver through Changbin’s back._

_“W-what?”_

_“We’re together for five months now, you know?” Hyunjins says with a little cute pout in his lips._

_“I… I know, Jinnie…” Changbin tries to answer, but…_

_“I love you and you love me. Why can’t we have sex?”_

_Hyunjin is right. And Changbin wants that. He really wants. He just thinks that it’s too soon for that and he wants to prepare things as well…_

_Changbin is planning a trip with Hyunjin to the beach and he’s just waiting for his official request of paid leave gets approved by the record company. He wants to travel to the beach, make a remarkable memory with Hyunjin, who never saw the sea before, and then… they can have their first time. It will be perfect. They just need to wait for a little more._

_“Just… wait, Jinnie” he finally answers._

_“But what we’re waiting for? I don’t get it” Hyunjin complains and Changbin just smiles, kissing the tip of the kitten’s nose._

_“There's no need to rush Jinnie. We have plenty of time”_

***

**_Changbin_ **

They said to wait.

Wait.

To fucking wait.

Changbin can’t wait. Every second that he waits means Hyunjin suffering more abuse. Being beaten up. Drugged. Or worst.

Changbin can’t wait.

“Changbin, please, calm down!” Jisung calls for him, but Changbin doesn’t listen. He’s packing.

“You can’t do anything against those men, we don’t even know where they took him!” Jisung tries to reason with him again, but Changbin doesn’t answer.

“Changbin!” and there are hands in his shoulders but Changbin doesn’t care so he pushes away those hands off of him and the muffled sound of something hitting the wall echoes in his ears.

“You don’t understand! I was supposed to _protect_ him! And I did nothing! _NOTHING!_ ” Changbin feels the ground under his feet giving in and he falls, he falls in the darkness, the despair and guilt that messes up with him.

Tears fall from his eyes and his hands are supporting his head, strong sobs shaking his body while gentle arms take his weak self inside a warm hug.

“Go and make some tea, Ji. I’ll talk to him”.

It’s Minho. Steady and strong Minho.

They stay like that for Changbin doesn’t know how long, until he finally opens his swollen eyes.

There’s tea above the nightstand and Minho is in front of him, a gentle smile in his face.

“Are you feeling more tranquil?” He asks. Changbin denies.

Silently the kitten moves and grabs the mug with tea inside and gives it to Changbin, who forces himself to drink the liquid, just a few sips from it.

“He needs me…” That’s all that Changbin manages to say.

“I know. But you need to calm down first. If you keep freaking out like that, things will be worse”.

Minho is right. But Changbin can’t wait. He needs to find Hyunjin.

They stay in silence for many minutes until Changbin whispers.

“I was drunk. When I noticed… he was already inside the van. I didn’t do anything. He was being kidnapped and managed to save Felix, meanwhile, I was… in the floor, watching. Just watching.”

Minho hugs Changbin again and whispers back.

“It’s not your fault.”

“It is. If I was sober I could…”

“Chris was sober. Did he manage to hold Felix in time? No. If wasn't for Hyunjin, Felix wouldn't be safe. This wasn't your fault, neither Chris’.”

Minho was always right.

“I need to go after him, Minho…”

“The police is already searching for him. They’ll find him, Changbin. I’m sure”.

***

_The nightmares are always the same._

_Hyunjin is separated from Changbin, returning to his old life, were fights and blood became worst than ever. The kitten is forced to fight again until one day… There’s Changbin. He tries to save him, but there’s a gun. A shot. And Hyunjin wakes up._

_The darkness is comforting, Changbin’s arms are warm around him and he’s safe._

_Hyunjin is safe._

_There’s no need to worry._

_Right?_

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

Hyunjin doesn’t know for how many days he’s been there. He thinks that... probably four days?

Well, he doesn’t have much opportunity to think about it as well. They’re forcing him to fight again. But, since Hyunjin was against it at the beginning, they injected something in his neck that makes him feel angry, so he fights to make that anger go away. He punches and kicks, but it never goes away. Never.

When he returns to the cage, he feels exhausted. Is like that thing running through is veins drains all his consciousness and strength away from him when he enters those iron bars. He can’t remember what he did, only that he fought. He doesn’t remember if he killed someone, only that he won. And Hyunjin is sure that if he won… someone died.

He noticed that the owners of that fighting ring were worst than the previous ones that commanded the past fight ring where Hyunjin grew up. These owners were cruellest, they liked to provide death to their audience, not only fighting and blood. They didn't care about the hybrids that they kept imprisoned too, all of them are disposable.

There were always new hybrids coming to the cages, new ones with scared big eyes. Cats, dogs, others that Hyunjin never knew existed… When Hyunjin is awake and fully aware of things surrounding him, he can always identify new hybrids.

Jeongin always tries to cheer him up, but the fox is scared as well. Hyunjin doesn’t know how the little one managed to survive, but he did it. Hyunjin was glad, but it means… there other hybrids who died because of that.

“He’s really funny, you know? He’s always playing with my ears and tail, and his parents are so gentle… mom and dad are really nice to me. They buy special biscuits and…” Hyunjin was laid at the cage floor, just listening to Jeongin talking about the family that he used to live with when suddenly, the big door from the shed where the cages are placed, opens.

Two men take one new cat hybrid that cries with despair. And Jeongin.

The fox looks at Hyunjin with glossy eyes and tries to fight back, but one week at that place made the little fox weaker, lighter and desperate. Jeongin is visibly skinnier than before and less bright. They drag the fox and the cat out of the shed and Hyunjin tries to push away the image of blood and death out of his mind.

He sleeps, but not that much. It’s only a tired and agitated nap and when he wakes up again, Jeongin is back. Bleeding. Crying. The cat is gone.

Hyunjin tries to comfort Jeongin, but the drug still runs through the fox’s veins and he almost hits Hyunjin with sharp claws when the kitten tries to reach for him through the iron bars, the anger makes his usual bright and happy eyes burn with dangerous liquid gold. He knows that is not Jeongin’s fault, so he just stays quiet and waits for the drug to fade away from the little fox’s body.

While he waits, Hyunjin notices something really sad. They’re the only ones that manage to stay alive. Almost all the other hybrids are new ones and only a few cats that survived from past fights are the oldest here, along with them, but they're wounded. Hyunjin and Jeongin are the ones that always survive. This is a problem.

In the past, when something similar to this happened, Hyunjin was forced to fight against the other best cat. He won. Both kittens survived, but the other kitten was quickly turned into sparring and one day… he was gone.

This time, he’ll probably win again. Jeongin is younger than him, smaller and is losing weight faster than Hyunjin. This thought makes the kitten cry, in silence. It makes him remember why he didn’t have any friends in the past. It was because of that: one day, they would be forced to fight against each other and one of them needed to survive.

Hyunjin doesn’t want to fight Jeongin. He doesn’t want to fight at all. If wasn’t for that drug, he’ll never fight and he would be probably dead by now and he didn’t care. Hyunjin prefers death than fighting. At least, he had a good life with Changbin and the others for short time, so he could die at peace. Maybe, if Jeongin is stronger than him, he would…

“Hy-Hyun… Hyunjin...” Jeongin calls from the darkness, whines of pain and sadness coming from the cage beside his. Hyunjin is taken away from is thoughts and just tries to comfort his little friend.

***

_“I like how you smell,” Hyunjin says, snuggling at Changbin’s neck._

_They’re together for just two weeks and Changbin is not used yet to how cuddly Hyunjin is but he likes it, somehow. He just needs to get used to all this touching._

_“How do I smell?” A shy smile spread his lips and Changbin hugs Hyunjin tighter._

_“Roses. And there’s chocolate, but the chocolate is weaker than the roses” Hyunjin smiles above his skin and Changbin needs to control the laugh that threats to shake his body from the tickle sensation._

_“I smell like garden, then?” He jokes._

_“Better than a garden,” Hyunjin says, sniffing at his neck again. This time, Changbin can’t help but laugh and this was his worst mistake because Hyunjin notices that he’s ticklishly and starts to poke his arms and rib bones making him cries from how much he’s laughing._

_Slowly, the kitten became part of his life. And, just a few months later, Hyunjin became Changbin’s everything. All that he did, he did thinking about Hyunjin._

_Would Hyunjin like this dish?_

_Would Hyunjin enjoy this music?_

_What Hyunjin would think about this lyric?_

_Would Hyunjin enjoy going to this restaurant?_

_This shirt would look beautiful on Hyunjin._

_What are Hyunjin's nightmares about?_

_I want to hold Hyunjin._

_Hyunjin, Hyunjin, Hyunjin._

***

**_Changbin_ **

They can’t find him.

It has been more than ten days now and Changbin can’t do anything. His request for a paid leave was granted by the record company and he hated it. He’s at home, without properly eating or sleeping, just worrying and silently crying.

This is miserable, he knows that. He also knows that Hyunjin wouldn’t like to see him that way, but he can’t help it.

He doesn’t know where to look for Hyunjin. He tried in the first days, he went to the nightclub, asked the workers from the place if they saw something, showed photos of Hyunjin to uncountable people in the streets.

Minho and Jisung stayed with him for a few days, trying to cheer him up. Felix spent a day with him, as well as Chris, but nothing could make him feel better. Nothing.

He was starting to feel like nothing.

Music became nothing to him, too. The world just didn’t make sense anymore.

Hyunjin was his world and he wasn’t there anymore, so Changbin’s life became… nothing.

 _“Come on, Changbin, you need to eat something. Please”_ , Chris calls him and asks Changbin to have breakfast with him and Felix, but Changbin doesn’t want to leave the house.

“Thank you, Chris, but I’m not going” and he hangs up the call. Better, he decides to turn off his phone.

There’s some bread at the kitchen, Changbin can eat it whenever he wants with whatever he has at the fridge, but later. Now, he wants to stay alone in the house.

He drags his tired body full of sadness and worries to his empty bedroom, lays at the bed and just stays still, looking at the ceiling. Changbin never noticed, but Hyunjin has a scent, too. It’s soap, lavender soap. And it’s everywhere.

The couch. Bathroom. Kitchen. The short hallways from the house. And their bedroom.

Changbin curls around himself in the middle of the bed, feeling Hyunjin’s scent impregnated at the pillow from the kitten’s side of the bed and takes a deep breath. It’s almost like Hyunjin is there, with him. But he’s not. Changbin is alone again, against his will, Hyunjin was taken away from him and he internally curses at all the fearful and warning thoughts that he had in the past, he should have listened to his consciousness…

He ends up falling asleep. And he has a nightmare. It’s full of blood and there’s a gun…

Changbin wakes up scared by the sound of a shot. His heart is beating too fast, he’s sweating, and there’s another sound… but it’s the house phone ringing. And the sound of strong knocks on his front door. Chris is screaming something from outside his house.

“Changbin! For fuck’s sake, are you there?! They found the place! Changbin!”


	2. what’s left after darkness fades away?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Changbin’s arms. That’s the first happy memory that Hyunjin has and the one strong constant in his new life.
> 
> Changbin’s scent. Roses all over the place and the tiny notes of chocolate that turned stronger when Changbin wanted to kiss him.
> 
> Changbin’s laugh and his music. The way he concentrates when he’s working at home.
> 
> Changbin’s lips gently touching his forehead and cheeks, the shy kiss that he leaves above Hyunjin’s lips right by the morning, when breakfast is not ready yet.
> 
> He loves Changbin, since the first time that he saw him.
> 
> The kitten always thought that he wouldn’t be able to live without Changbin and he was right."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello loves!
> 
> I'm sorry, this chapter took more time than expected to write it, but it's finally here! I hope you guys like it. Btw, I tried to write the end really sweet ♥
> 
> !!! WARNINGS !!!
> 
> 1) This has mentions of fighting, blood and some action. I didn't write any graphic scene, but it has a few appearances of people fighting and police stuff. Be aware of that. I promise that it's nothing extreme, btw, just mentions.
> 
> 2) Hyunjin has nightmares as well, but I didn't describe them detailed and it doesn't have any panic or anxiety attack in this fanfic.
> 
> 3) There are some flashbacks in the middle of the text, they're in italic. Any of the flashbacks have a chronological line, all the events are from different times in the past, not necessarily connected by dates, in order. They're all connected by the feelings that they convey.
> 
> 4) There are some hospital scenes and mentions of surgeries, but only that. I didn't describe too much because I don't like hospitals myself, so I tried to avoid too much description of the place to not feeling discomfort. So, if you feel like me, don't worry, I tried to avoid describing the place and etcetera.
> 
> I'm not a native English speaker, so, please, excuse the possible mistakes made during the text, I tried my best!
> 
> What I wrote here is not how I see the members or anything, I fully respect them. Please, be aware that this is only fanfic, nothing more than that.
> 
> The series starts with the "Stray" fanfic that was inspired by a thread that I saw on twitter - https://twitter.com/kittnsungie/status/1220119074392477697.

**_Changbin_ **

Changbin is inside a police car.

The police planned a huge mission to break into the fighting ring. There is a lot of cars and even a black trunk with a special force from the police, officers wearing black bulletproofs, helmets and holding guns.

Gun.

Shot.

Changbin was dreaming about something with guns when Chris appeared at his house, screaming about a call from the police and why Changbin wasn’t answering his cellphone. Apparently, after days of searching and gathering other disappearance reports of other hybrids around the State, the police finally found a place that the organization was likely hiding.

There wasn’t any confirmation if Hyunjin was there, not even if he was alive because, according to the investigators, this organization was worse than the previous one, they enjoyed death, as well as their online audience. They were more organized and their owners run a huge online betting scheme that was hidden at the deep web.

They never lost a hybrid, not until the kidnap of Hyunjin. They failed on taking Felix with them and because of that, the police was able to track the black van and follow the suspects. The van never stopped more than one minute at the streets, those men were always fast catching the hybrids that never resisted for much time during the kidnapping. But, because Hyunjin fought and the fact that he left, without notice, an apparent mark at the outside of the van, the police was able to do their job identifying the vehicle and tracking it. It took a lot of time, this organization was difficult to find, but they did it. The police found them.

Hyunjin. He saved Felix and now, he probably saved more hybrids because of his courage.

Changbin wanted Hyunjin by his side, but after what happened… He didn’t know if Hyunjin still loved him, trusted or wanted to be by his side. He promised to himself that he would respect what Hyunjin wanted to do after all of this ended, but… would he be able to accept if Hyunjin didn’t want to stay with him anymore? Or worse, how would he react if Hyunjin wasn’t alive anymore?

***

_Changbin’s arms. That’s the first happy memory that Hyunjin has and the one strong constant in his new life._

_Changbin’s scent. Roses all over the place and the tiny notes of chocolate that turned stronger when Changbin wanted to kiss him._

_Changbin’s laugh and his music. The way he concentrates when he’s working at home._

_Changbin’s lips gently touching his forehead and cheeks, the shy kiss that he leaves above Hyunjin’s lips right by the morning, when breakfast is not ready yet._

_He loves Changbin, since the first time that he saw him._

_The kitten always thought that he wouldn’t be able to live without Changbin and he was right._

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

Exhaustion. That’s what describes Hyunjin’s state of mind and body.

The kitten never felt so exhausted. He was used to fighting, and he should be used to this life, but something makes it worse now. He doesn’t know if it’s because he had tasted some of the happiness that existed out there and everything is sad now, or it was the drugs that he was forced to consume almost every day.

He lost track of time. He doesn’t know for how long he’s been drugged and forced into fighting; it feels like ages now. Hyunjin doesn’t feel his fingers anymore, nor from his hands or his feet. He knows that the drug is doing something to his body, but it’s not as effective as before, it makes him slow now, not that angry anymore. But this doesn’t mean that he has more consciousness, it’s the opposite: Hyunjin feels more out of himself now. He's been beaten up more, because of how slow he became. It hurts. A lot.

When he returns from the fights, he's not able to talk with Jeongin anymore, so he just sleeps the pain away. It's the same with the little fox and Hyunjin is worried about him, but everything turned into a vicious cycle of pain, fight, drugs and exhaustion. He can't even stay awake to take care of himself, let alone help Jeongin, which apparently, is at the same state as Hyunjin.

They're both going to die or probably kill each other at the fighting ring. It's sad, and Hyunjin wishes that he had met Jeongin outside this situation, they could have turned into really good friends. But that's not reality, and Hyunjin is tired of wishing for things that he doesn’t have anymore.

Although all the evil around him, Hyunjin’s dreams started to be kind on him. The nightmares disappeared and the kitten always dreams with Changbin and his arms, his laugh, his scent and voice. His friends. The way he used to feel loved. He wouldn't mind dying at this place, he was able to meet the love of his life and make friends, having a happy life for a short period of time. He would die happy.

When the huge metal door from the shed suddenly opens, Hyunjin expects to watch and hear more of his fellow hybrids crying, but it doesn't happen. It's his cage that is opened.

That can't be. He just returned from fighting… he won't be able to fight again, not in that short period of time.

But those men don’t care. Here, at this fighting ring, the hybrids are disposable. They don’t care about maintaining their income and this is a dangerous thing.

The man drags Hyunjin out from inside the cage. Only him. The kitten doesn't know what's happening but it's not a good thing. While he's been dragged out of the shed, Jeongin silently looks at him and Hyunjin just stares back at the little fox.

==========================================================================================

"He shouldn't go alone," Minho says and Jisung looks at him, noticing the intense worrying that never left his kitten's eyes since Hyunjin was kidnapped.

"He'll be okay. The police are with him, Min. Hopefully, we'll see Hyunjin by the night. Everything is going to be okay" Jisung tries to sound convincing, but he doesn't believe in his own words. Jisung is trying to comfort Minho, but that doesn’t go well since he doesn’t believe in a word that he just said and the kitten notices this. Minho doesn't say anything, he just rests his head at Jisung's shoulder and keeps in silence.

Chris is silent as well. Jisung observes him from across the room at the police station and takes a quick glance at Felix, that takes a nap with his head resting at Chris’ lap.

"He hasn’t been sleeping well since it happened," Chris says, he’s a big pile of worry looking at his kitty.

"I think that none of us is sleeping at all" Minho says, grabbing at one of Jisung's hands and playing with his shaky fingers. The kitten is trying to calm him down with discrete gestures. Jisung loves him for that.

"They deserve better. Hyunjin is a good kitten. They should be happy." Jisung says, without thinking. He’s trying to hold back the tears, but it’s useless. Minho takes him in both of his hands and adjusts Jisung’s head close to his shoulders, their positions changing. Jisung cries in silence, his sobs muffled by Minho’s skin.

“They’ll be alright. I know it” Chris tries to say, but his voice is weak.

Jisung will never forget how Chris’ voice sounded that night when everything happened.

He was peacefully sleeping, Minho snuggling at him in the bed when his cell phone rang in the middle of the night. Both woke up together, exchanging worried looks in the darkness of their bedroom and when Jisung saw that was Chris’ calling, he knew that something had happened.

 _“Felix… Jinnie… Jisung, please…”_ He couldn’t even speak.

Jisung and Minho got dressed as quickly as they could, took a cab and rushed to the police station. If they thought that Chris was desperate, Changbin was worse than that, he was… he was destroyed. Something had broken inside Changbin that night and the look in his eyes was horrible.

It was empty.

There was nothing inside Changbin, Jisung knew that at the moment he saw his friend seated by the police station chair. He didn’t speak a word to Jisung and Minho. He just kept looking at the ground, head down, shaky fingers, silent tears.

Chris explained to them what happened, while Felix cried in his arms.

Jisung had a feeling that Hyunjin was always strong, courageous, since the night that they met, but that… He sacrificed himself for Felix. He could fight for his own safety, but he prefered to save Felix and being taken away instead. That was… Jisung is still unable to describe what he felt when he heard what Hyunjin did.

If that had happened with Minho, Jisung didn’t know how he would react and he couldn’t imagine Changbin’s pain. When Changbin met Hyunjin, he clearly became another person, more lively, cheerful. Every day he was happy, even if he was tired from work. Hyunjin gave life to Changbin and having that take away from him, in such a horrible manner… Really, Jisung couldn’t imagine the pain.

And the circumstances as well, it all happened so fast and Changbin was distracted, as well as Chris. He wasn’t able to do nothing more than scream. Chris could grab at Felix’s waist in time, but if it wasn’t for Hyunjin, those men would take Felix away too, because they were stronger and had the surprise at their side.

They saw the footage from the security cameras placed in front of the nightclub. It was really fast. The van stopped and the man took Hyunjin first really fast while pushing Changbin away, who fell into the floor, and another man grabbed Felix by the arms when Hyunjin was already inside the van. They could clearly see when Chris was almost losing Felix for those men, he wouldn’t be able to hold the kitten for longer and that was the moment when Hyunjin’s claws and his grey tail appeared at the screen. He did something from inside the van, the man that was holding Felix suddenly back off and the kitten fell to the floor with Chris by his side. A huge scratch appeared at the van’s door and the vehicle started to move after that. Changbin was in the ground during the whole happening, he was able to get up only when the door was closing.

Everything took not longer than a few seconds, Jisung could tell that the kidnapping happened in one minute. But it was longer than the expected for those men because Hyunjin fought back, and that was brave. That was the bravest thing that Jisung ever saw someone doing, in his whole life. He felt proud and sad at the same time. That was his friend: bravely fighting, saving his other friend, but that was also his friend, being kidnapped, taken away from his life by greedy and horrible men.

Jisung would never forget that scene.

==========================================================================================

_“I love you,” Hyunjin says. His voice is soft and Changbin feels his heart that melts inside his chest._

_“I love you too, Jinnie” Changbin answers, but Hyunjin denies._

_“You didn’t understand. I love you.” He repeats and Changbin just looks at him this time, feeling confused._

_They’re back at their house after spending the night at Chris’ apartment, making sure that Felix was okay after everything that happened with his past owner. Hyunjin is standing still at the doorway of their bedroom and Changbin is undressing from his blazer and shirt. He stops all his movements and just looks at Hyunjin._

_The kitten’s eyes are shining, they have a different light in them. It’s serious._

_Changbin walks into Hyunjin’s direction and takes his hands in his._

_“I love you, Changbin. And it’s not because you found me in the streets, not because you gave me a home, or because I’m a cat hybrid that was made to seek companionship and feel loved by an owner, I love you because I love you. Because you are you. I fell in love with you, Changbin” Hyunjin says and Changbin just looks at him, quietly taking in what he just heard._

_After a few seconds of silence, Changbin takes Hyunjin’s face in his hands and brings the kitten’s forehead close to his, placing them together._

_“I love you too”_

***

**_Changbin_ **

They’re getting close. Changbin can already see the huge huge metal shed from far away across the road and anxiety starts to run through his veins, injecting adrenaline in his system. The place is abandoned and has a lot of open space, with a simple house beside the shed, while some containers surround the back of the property.

The trunk with the special forces from the police arrives first and Changbin can see from distance all the huge guns and the way that the men from the special force move in groups while entering the place. The investigators and other common policeman stay behind with Changbin and other civils, one man and a woman that was accompanying the operation as well. They were owners too, waiting to see if their hybrids were in that place as well.

Changbin can’t think about anything else than Hyunjin. When his car finally parks at a safe distance from everything that is happening, he almost jumps out of it to run to the place, but he’s prevented to get closer by one police officer.

He needs to see for himself.

He needs Hyunjin in his arms, safe with him.

There’s a tense atmosphere from where he stands, watching while the special force walks around the abandoned house, men placing themselves beside the shed, guns in their hands. Until then, he hears it.

***

_There’s nothing better than feeling safe. Hyunjin feels safe and at peace inside Changbin’s arms and around his friends._

_He loves how Felix is always friendly, hugging him and making him laugh, the pink-haired kitten close to a younger brother to him. How Minho is always wise and a good listener, his presence comforting and the way he feels like he’s the older brother to Hyunjin and Felix._

_Chris is that smiley friend, the comfortable presence, the one that puts everyone together and makes then even closer. He’s the centre of their little group of owners and kittens and he’s the best at helping all of them. Jisung is… Jisung. Clumsy, funny, sometimes shy and always open to hearing Hyunjin and giving him good encouragement words._

_And, there’s Changbin._

_His anchor. His lover. His tiny owner, that makes his world better, brighter, happier. That turned the darkness of his life into a bright sunny day, full of love and safety._

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

This is worse than fighting. Worse than being drugged and forced on doing things that you don’t want to do.

“You little shit!”

And it comes, again. Straight to his face.

It hurts, but not that much anymore. Hyunjin’s body is numb, he can’t feel anything. Only the uncountable number of punches and kicks that comes directly to his face and upper body and the taste of blood in his tongue, but it doesn’t hurt that much. However, this isn’t the worst part of this situation.

They know. They all know who's coming, and Hyunjin is paying the price for that.

From outside the poor small office that was improvised at a container at the back of the huge shed where the hybrids are kept, Hyunjin can hear rushed footsteps, humans running and screaming something, trying to gather everything that they have. There are meows and other noises from other hybrids as well and Hyunjin thinks that they’re probably taking the best fighters with them.

They’re running away.

At first, Hyunjin didn’t understand why they were running away, but now, he knows. And this, this is what hurts the most.

The man that’s beating him spills another curse and Hyunjin feels the kick at his stomach forcing him to throw whatever was inside it. He doesn’t remember the last time that he ate, probably two days ago and it was a tasteless porridge that was cold, given to him after he finishes one fighting.

“You ruined! You fucking ruined everything!”

Another strong kick, but this time, at the base of Hyunjin’s back. Suddenly, everything hurts and Hyunjin screams, feeling his arms shaking and… nothing… nothing from…

“We need to go, they’re getting closer with every second!” Another man says, suddenly appearing at the front door of the container and the one that was attacking Hyunjin stops his motions. There is a metallic click and Hyunjin closes his eyes, shutting them down with all the force that he has.

And then, there’s the sound, that one specific sound that he always heard in his nightmares.

A shot.

***

**_Changbin_ **

He’s running.

Mind blank and ears deaf, Changbin can only run, forcing his weak legs to move as fast as he can. He doesn’t see anything as well, he just moves into the direction of the shot, from where it echoed.

When he finally can see, he’s standing at the back of the shed, the special forces running everywhere and firing their guns, screaming commands. He’s wearing a bulletproof as well for safety, so Changbin actually doesn’t care about the shots, he runs after the policemen, watching those men that kidnapped his kitten being immobilized at the dirt ground, some of them with bleeding legs and others trying to escape.

Changbin stops by the side of one container, his eyes searching for Hyunjin. He can feel the adrenaline making his senses keener, his racing heart beating too fast inside his chest, uneasy breathing. 

The place is a complete mess and full of noises but he is capable of hearing it. Since the first time that they met, Changbin always heard him, even if it was only a whisper.

Changbin runs to the front door of the container beside him, quickly opening it and he screams. Changbin screams for help with all the strength inside his lungs and runs to his kitty, holding the skinny bruised body in his arms, eyes full of tears while he sees blood, blood everywhere.

He’s late.

==========================================================================================

Before meeting Jisung, Minho had already given up of love. He had decided to stay in a comfortable place, living a tranquil life until finally, he would die alone. But the warm and clumsy Jisung came and changed his life, his dreams and his reality.

It was the same for Felix. The poor kitten was kicked out of his home, never loved and suffering in the streets until he decided to sneak inside an apartment at a certain rainy night, seeking for shelter and food. He met Chris and they became friends. Then, after some time, more than friends. They became lovers.

Minho and Felix had a calm life with their owners, feeling as happy and loved as it was possible. They never suffered anything extreme before or after meeting their owners, only the normal hardships that came with life and although their past difficulties, they could say that they never had a rough life, nor a sad one. When they heard how was Hyunjin’s past life Minho knew it: he never truly suffered before. Never.

Nothing that Minho experienced before could compare to the painful reality that Hyunjin was lucky to escape from. And, even if the taller kitten suffered a lot of abuse, physically and mentally, Hyunjin was never aggressive towards others, he never even screamed or talked harshly, not even if he was upset. He was always gentle and considerate.

So, Minho didn’t understand what Hyunjin did to deserve all of that. Not even Changbin, who was always kind and respectful, always avoiding hurting others’ feelings and doing his best to treat people around him in the right manner. Minho couldn’t really understand.

They were already waiting at the police station for hours when an officer came to the waiting room explaining what happened and what was the outcome of the operation. Minho never felt so desperate.

Chris wasn’t supposed to drive in the state he was in after hearing the news. He couldn’t even stay at his feet. Jisung was a shaky mess inside Minho’s arms and Felix… Felix couldn’t stop sobbing. So, Minho needed to guide their friends and lover now, since he was the only one that was a little more stable, although his panic and fear.

The kitten asked if the police could take them to the hospital. They agreed to give them a ride to the place since they need to collect testimonies and talk to the victims. Minho stayed with Jisung in one car and Chris and Felix went in another one.

Now that they arrive, they can't do much as well. The emergency sector of the hospital is a mess and there are doctors, nurses, paramedics and assistants running to one side to the other. Chris and Felix stay at the corner of the waiting room while Minho and Jisung try to find information.

The reception girls are not happy to talk to then, but Minho actually can take some information from them and they're told that a surgery is going on and that they need to wait.

"I'm tired of waiting" Jisung harshly says. Minho takes him far from the reception balcony and hugs him, in silence. Unfortunately, the only thing that they can do now is wait and nothing more.

==========================================================================================

“He was really nice”

Felix looks at the pair of golden eyes that shines at the white light of the hospital room.

“He talked to me. A lot. Well, it was only me talking for most of the time, but it helped me to distract. When my consciousness returned, he was always there. Waiting.”

It’s a fox. A cute fox with orange ears and a fluffy tail, tiny hands and a big smile. He’s young but he’s covered in bruises and cuts, one leg and arm were broken, one of his golden eyes are painted with purple around and there’s a big cut at the fox’s dry lips.

His name is Jeongin and he’s one of the victims that survived and were rescued when the police arrived at the place where they were being held captive. The fox stayed all those days beside Hyunjin, in another cage close to the kitten.

“I’m happy that you stayed by his side” Minho answers, trying to smile.

All of them stayed at the hospital for the whole night, waiting for news. When they heard about someone that survived and that met Hyunjin at that horrible place, they ran and tried to talk to the hybrid.

Felix looks at Minho that holds a friendly conversation with the fox and sighs. The kitten feels tired and he can’t actually talk with the fox, so he just stays quiet, listening to Minho’s soft voice while his mind wanders through the events from the past couple of weeks.

Chris and Jisung went to buy something for them to eat, leaving the kittens at the hospital for a little while, since it’s early in the morning and none of them ate nothing since yesterday. However, Felix feels like he can’t eat. He can’t smile. Laugh. Sleep. He can’t do anything.

He is a big pile of despair, sadness, worry and guilt since that night. If he had never suggested to Hyunjin to go to the nightclub, none of this would have happened. Chris tried to comfort him, but for the first time since they’re together, Chris wasn’t able to make things better, nor ease the sadness that took place at Felix’s heart.

The kitten would never forget what Hyunjin did.

“I heard that the police is looking for your family,” Minho says, helping Jeongin with his breakfast. The fox is alone in the room and the nurses can’t give him much attention since they’re trying to take care of the many hybrids that arrived yesterday night with the police, all of them rescued from the cages, so Minho decided to stay and help to take care of Jeongin, so Felix just stayed with his friend.

“Yes, they said that to me,” Jeongin says and he smiles at Minho. They stay in silence for a little while when Jeongin finally talks again, his bright face suddenly turning sad, “He was the strongest among all the others. He’ll survive, I know it”.

==========================================================================================

**_Changbin_ **

He was still trying to understand the events from yesterday.

Somehow, those men from the organization got to know that the police were going after them, so they decided to run away. They probably had some contact inside the police, because the man that was the head of the scheme went for Hyunjin and tried to take revenge on the kitten, they knew that the police was able to track them only because Hyunjin scratched the van.

While the special forces got inside the place, one officer spotted one of the men that were part of the organization screaming at the entrance of one of the containers. They started to act from there. The same officer was able to immobilize that man with a shot in his leg and when he looked inside the container, he saw the man that was the head of the organization pointing a gun directly to Hyunjin’s face, who was laid at the floor beneath him, unconscious and immobile.

That man was ready to kill Hyunjin, but the officer entered the container and did his best to stop him. The shot almost hit Hyunjin’s forehead, but, because of how fast the officer moved, the shot only grazed one of Hyunjin's shoulders.

They arrested the head of the organization and rescued all the surviving hybrids.

Changbin doesn’t remember much from yesterday, only that he ran and screamed. When he saw all the blood beneath Hyunjin and how the kitten wasn’t moving, he thought the worst.

Hyunjin was unconscious not only because he was beaten up badly, but because he was malnourished, with a lot of untreated wounds and severely addicted to some unknown drug, as well. When the paramedics arrived to treat the hybrids, they took Hyunjin as quick as possible to the hospital. Changbin stayed with his kitten inside the vehicle, accompanied him until he was allowed.

The doctors decided to proceed with emergency surgery to take care of Hyunjin’s wounds, principally because of one of them that was really serious, located at the kitten’s back, a result from all the punches and kicks that the kitten endured from that horrible man. He kicked Hyunjin’s back and the doctors said that a bone was broken and it had to be corrected, Changbin didn’t understand at all, only that his kitten needed to go through emergency procedure. He was too scared to understand anything.

They did some exams on Hyunjin and discovered that the drug was so aggressive that it started to affect Hyunjin’s senses and God knows what more.

Changbin couldn’t stop worrying. Although the police were able to rescue Hyunjin, the kitten was still in danger because of all the abuse that he endured.

He wasn’t able to do anything during the surgery hours. Changbin couldn’t leave the waiting room close to the surgery sector and he didn’t leave Hyunjin’s side when the kitten got out of the procedure straight to the ICU.

“We did our best to treat his back, but we’ll be able to know the extensions of the damage only when he wakes up,” the doctor says, leaving a numb Changbin behind. He turns to the hospital bed where Hyunjin is laid unconscious and just cries.

Hyunjin still looks horrible. He has so many bruises at his face that it’s almost impossible to recognize his facial expressions. He’s thinner than before. His hair was poorly cut in a short haircut. When they arrive, he was wearing only the emerald shirt and a black boxer, the green in his shirt painted with stains of dried blood and dirt. Changbin should go home and get some clothes to the kitten, or even ask one of his friends to do so, but he’s not able to do it.

Changbin seats by Hyunjin’s side, at one of the seats that are placed beside the hospital bed at the ICU room. He keeps looking at Hyunjin for he doesn’t know how long when a nurse enters the room to check at the kitten. She’s young and asks a few questions to Changbin while taking notes and when she sees Hyunjin’s name at the paper that she’s been writing, she smiles.

“He’s very loved,” she says.

“What?” Changbin doesn’t understand.

“His friends are at the waiting room of the hospital since yesterday. They didn’t leave the hospital for the whole night”.

Changbin didn’t know that their friends were at the hospital.

“They’re still here?”

“I think so. Do you want to talk to them?”

==========================================================================================

Chris doesn’t want to eat, but he can’t neglect the fact that all of them are too weak to keep waiting at the hospital for longer, so he agrees with Jisung to leave the kittens and grab some food for all of them at the convenience store close to the place.

He hopes Hyunjin gets out of this situation well and healthy. The kitten put up with a lot of shit and he deserved to be happy.

“I’ll pick something for us to drink,” Jisung says, sleepy eyes wandering through the convenience store. Chris just nods and goes to the snacks section.

Hyunjin needs to survive. Chris needs to proper hug the kitten, thank him for what he did, ask for apologies, beg for his forgiveness, say how much he’s grateful and how much he regrets his actions. He should have helped Hyunjin. The look that Hyunjin gave him at the night of the kidnapping was still engraved in his mind.

_Goodbye._

_Take care of Felix._

_I love all of you._

There were so many unsaid things inside that look, so many feelings conveyed in just one second. He would never forget how Hyunjin’s eyes shined in the darkness, and he would be forever grateful to the kitten.

“Do you want some water? I picked bottles of orange and watermelon juice, but I think that would be good to buy some bottles of water, we don’t know for how long we’re going to stay…” Jisung’s voice echoes beside Chris, but he can’t answer. His vision is blurred and he can feel the knot inside his throat tightening. He’s been trying to be strong for Felix, but… Knowing that his friend was still in danger after so many days being forced to fight and that Hyunjin could not survive…

“Chris?” Jisung approaches him, a soft hand touching his back. Suddenly the burden of guilt and worry that Chris feels growing above his shoulders during the last days gets heavier and he can’t stop the sobs that shake his tired body, his trembling hands letting go of the snacks that he was holding, eyes glued to the ground.

Jisung holds him inside a soft hug, hands travelling through his back in a comforting manner, caressing his tired shoulders. Chris knows that Jisung is as tired and worried as him, and he should be comforting his friend too, but he needs some support right now. Chris is not able to crumble before Felix, his kitty needs a strong partner and a safe place to hold, so Chris will let his worries overflow right now, for just a few minutes before going back to his friends and lover.

==========================================================================================

Felix can’t let go of Changbin.

All of them are crying, terrible sobs echoing at the waiting room of the hospital while people pass through them, looking at the five friends hugging each other.

Chris, Felix, Jisung and Minho were eating the things that Chris and Jisung bought earlier, trying to have a decent breakfast in silence when Changbin’s voice was heard, calling for them. At the moment Felix saw Changbin, he jumped out of his chair and crashed his friend inside a tight hug, not holding back all the tears that he was trying to control.

Soon, Chris, Jisung and Minho joined them and the crying session began.

“I’m sorry, Binnie, I’m so sorry…” Felix couldn’t stop apologizing.

“No… Lixie, no…” Changbin tried to answer him, but none of them could stay calm to actually talk to each other.

After a few minutes of sobbing, Minho drags them all to have a seat at the chairs of the waiting room, and Felix sat beside Changbin while holding his hands, listening to what he had to say.

Changbin told them about what happened to Hyunjin in details when the police arrived at the place where the organization held the hybrids imprisoned. He told about how the police from the special forces saved Hyunjin and that the shot only grazed the kitten’s shoulder, but when he explained about the injury at Hyunjin’s back… none of them could nearly breathe. That was the main reason why Hyunjin went through that emergency surgery.

“He’s at the ICU now, we’re waiting for him to wake up. The doctor said that we’ll be able to know if the injury is too bad only when Jinnie wakes up, so… that’s the news” Changbin explained. Felix felt his heart shrinking in despair again.

They stayed in silence until Minho decided to speak.

“Hyunjin went through a lot of things. Really bad things. And he was able to survive. He’ll get through this, he’ll be okay, Changbin. We just need to believe in him.”

The five friends just stared at each other and silently agreed with what Minho said. Felix felt a little stronger in the company of his friends, but he was still feeling guilty for what happened with Hyunjin. He felt that he needed to talk to Changbin and ask for an apology.

“Binnie…” His voice tone is soft and still choked up of feelings.

Changbin looks at him, wide eyes while he holds Felix’s hands in his.

“I’m so sorry. I should have listened to you and Chris. We shouldn’t have gone to that place. It’s my fault, I-” The tear overflooded again and Felix felt Changbin’s arms around him, his gentles hands caressing his back while Changbin talked with fondness and care.

“No, Lix. It’s not your fault, please, don’t blame yourself. Nothing that happened is your fault, I’m sure that Hyunjin doesn’t blame you, I bet that this thought not even crossed his mind” Hyunjin was right. Changbin’s arms felt gentle and warm around Felix, the kitten felt safe inside them.

They stay hugging each other for quite some time until Chris talks.

“He looked at me, Changbin. From inside the van,” Chris’ voice was weak. Felix turns to his owner and stares at Chris’ glossy eyes. He’s looking at Changbin, regret printed in his face, shaky hands glued to each other and Felix can almost see the burden that forces down Chris’ shoulders, “He looked at me when that man let go of Felix. I’m sorry I didn’t help him. I… I wasn’t able to… I’m sorry. I’m really sorry”.

Felix looks back at Changbin that has his eyes facing down. He waits a little to answer.

“What Hyunjin’s eyes told you?” Changbin is now looking at Chris, glossy eyes all over again.

“He was grateful”

“So, this is what matters. I told Felix, Chris. None of this is our fault. You couldn’t have done much than what you did and I… I learned my lesson, in the toughest way. When Hyunjin wakes up, I’m going to make up to him and y’all can still be good friends to him. He’ll need that.”

Chris stares at Changbin and just nods, in silence. Felix feels the urgency to go to his owner and he does just that, the kitten holds Chris inside his tiny arms and kisses his cheeks, trying to ease the heaviness inside Chris’ heart.

“Did you eat something while waiting for Jinnie to get out of the surgery?” Jisung asks and Changbin just stares at his friend in silence.

“You need to at least eat to be able to keep company to Jinnie,” Minho says and all of them makes Changbin eat something before turning back to Hyunjin’s room at the ICU.

The day goes by and all of them stay at the hospital, Changbin coming to the waiting room sometimes to clear his mind and talk to them. They visit Jeongin as well, to keep him company and introduce him to Changbin, whose glad to meet someone that was good to Hyunjin during those terrible days.

Jeongin’s family arrives too and they all meet them. It’s a nice couple that lives in a good neighbourhood, with their younger son that is seven years old. Their older son is already at the college and he arrives later, his name is Seungmin and it’s a wonderful young man and really gentle. He cries a lot and holds Jeongin inside a tight hug while pulling his younger brother with him as well. Jeongin looks happy and brighter than before.

The little fox recovers fast and is discharged in the following day. All five friends say their goodbyes to Jeongin with the promise to meet him another day with Hyunjin fully recovered. They exchange contacts with Seungmin and soon it’s night time again, two days have passed and Hyunjin still hasn’t wake up.

“It’s better for you guys to go back to your apartments, I’ll call when Jinnie wakes up,” Changbin says, dark round circles above his eyes while he tries to smile. He’s wearing the same clothes from when he left the house to accompany the police for the rescue mission. He doesn’t eat well and Felix thinks that he doesn’t even sleep.

“We’ll stay,” Felix says. Changbin and Hyunjin need them.

“No, Lix, all of us are tired. At least you guys need to take some rest. I promise I’m going to call when he wakes up”.

Felix feels tired, it’s true, but he doesn’t want to let his friends alone. He looks at Chris to ask to stay but Chris is visibly tired too, the kitten can’t ask him that... So, Felix just keeps in silence while Minho talks with Changbin, asking if he wants him and Jisung to pick up any clothes and extra battery to charge the cellphone, as well as some snacks.

When Felix finally says something, they’re all inside a cab, heading home.

“I miss Jinnie, Chris”.

==========================================================================================

**_Changbin_ **

It has been four days since Hyunjin arrived at the hospital.

The doctors are taking care of him and treating his body, giving medicines to him to clean his system from the drug. They say that Hyunjin doesn’t need to stay at the ICU anymore, that his condition is finally stable so they put him in a normal room, for others to visit him as well. Although things look fine, Hyunjin hasn’t wake up yet.

Changbin talked with the doctors about his concern and one of them explained that the reason why Hyunjin doesn’t wake up is probably because of exhaustion combined with the side effects of the drug that inflicted his body, so the best that Changbin could do was wait. Again.

Their friends are taking turns to bring food and visit Hyunjin, letting Changbin rest a little while they keep a close eye at the kitten. The fox that became friend with Hyunjin came a few times as well with his owner, Seungmin, who’s a good kid and really friendly.

All seems fine, but Changbin’ doesn’t feel like fine. He feels anxious, worried, he misses Hyunjin’s warmth and kisses, he misses him since the very second that the kitten was taken from him.

The waiting is horrible, frustrating and tiring. Changbin wishes that he was able to wake Hyunjin, to take away all his suffering and heal every wound and possibly damage that was caused to his body. He wanted to surround Hyunjin again with love, to shower him with kisses and hug him again, but this time, tighter than before. He wanted to make Hyunjin feel safe, loved and happy. He wants his kitten back. He wants Hyunjin back.

“Please, Jinnie, come back…” He whispers, kissing the kitten’s forehead while trying to have breakfast, sitting by the side of the hospital bed.

They’re almost one month apart from each other. All those horrible two weeks when Changbin didn’t know where Hyunjin was and these four days without knowing how’s the real condition of Hyunjin’s health are killing Changbin from inside out. The pain in his heart is worse than the tiredness and all the headaches that he has right now.

He puts aside the natural sandwich and the juice that Jisung brought this morning and just sighs. A deep and tired sigh. He looks at his kitten, his hand above Hyunjin’s, caressing the cold fingers with fondness. Most of his day Changbin spends looking at Hyunjin, registering how the bruises are slowly healing, how the cuts are finally closing… and sometimes he just takes a walk through the external area of the hospital and calls his friends.

Changbin decides to take his usual morning walk, so he sorts the food inside the lunchbox that Jisung left with him, takes a last sip on the juice and lifts from his chair beside Hyunjin’s bed. He leaves a tender kiss at the kitten’s cheeks and starts walking.

“I love you,” He says, and starts to walk away from the bed.

He is near to the door, preparing to get out of the room when he listens to it. Again, is almost a whisper and it’s too low but Changbin always heard Hyunjin. The soft meow is followed by a whimper of discomfort and Changbin thinks that his heart just stopped beating.

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

_She has a long and straight black hair, warm brown eyes, fluffy ears and a beautiful black tail. Her voice is soft and loving and she’s telling him how much he’s beautiful, how big and sparkly his eyes are, how impossibly handsome and like his father he looks like._

_She loves him._

_He thinks that he probably smiled at her because she’s smiling back, a big and sunny smile that reflects part of her love for him, he can feel it._

_He doesn’t know how old he is, but he can walk and she’s helping him to stand still, holding his tiny hands and pointing at someone before him telling him to go and move forward, to meet someone... He sees a big grey tail wiggling in the air and big arms opened before him, the sunlight catching the soft black stripes at the greyish fur from the ears while a strong male voice tells him that…_

“I love you”

The room is white and there’s no light inside it, only the one that comes from the window. It’s not too bright, and he feels thankful for that because his eyes hurt and he can’t open them too much.

“Jinnie?!”

He hums in response and suddenly there are arms around him, a warm embrace around his chest while sobs echos in his ears, a humid sensation tickling the skin of his neck. In his mind, he’s talking, crying and hugging him as well, but he can’t move his body, somehow. Everything feels numb and he can’t do much rather than silently cry. He knows that warmth like the palm of his hand.

_Changbin._

Hyunjin wants to hug him, kiss his cheeks and lips and cry in his arms. He wants to ask what happened because the last thing that he remembers is to listen to a metallic click of a gun close to his head and an excruciating pain in his back.

_His back._

Oh no.

Please, no.

“Bi…” he needs to ask. He needs to know.

“No, Jinnie, don’t move! Calm down, I’m going to call the doctors!”

Hyunjin tries to hold Changbin’s hand but _he can’t move._ He listens to the sound of footsteps moving away and his mind is weak, he can’t stay awake. So he gives in to the darkness and hopes to dream that dream again, to listen to her voice one more time and hold those strong arms that were ready to receive his tiny self inside a warm hug.

***

**_Changbin_ **

“As we already knew, he has a backbone fracture. We didn’t know how bad it was but now that he’s awake, we can tell that the damages are not permanent. He’ll need to stay in absolute rest, he can’t move out of the bed for eight to twelve weeks. The time that he’ll need to completely recover will depend on how healthy he is, too. During this time, I’ll decide about the physiotherapy that he’ll need to take, but, for now, you can relax. With treatment and the right amount of rest, he’ll be fine”.

Changbin finally feels that he can breathe again. His lungs are not pressured with anxiety or worries anymore.

The doctor gives instructions to the nurses that were designed to take care of Hyunjin, telling them the medicines that the kitten will need to take after waking up. Hyunjin is having trouble breathing and his senses are very sensitive, he barely can open his eyes without feeling discomfort, but _he’s awake._

Hyunjin came back.

“How you’re feeling?” Changbin asks with a low voice tone, taking one of Hyunjin’s hands.

“Tired” Hyunjin answers, closed eyes and shaky voice.

Changbin takes a deep breath, lowering himself to place tender kisses at each one of Hyunjin’s knuckles. They stay in silence and Changbin takes the opportunity to just listen to the sound of Hyunjin’s deep breathing. Before he wakes up his breathing was so weak, Changbin couldn’t listen to it properly... But now, he’s finally awake and...

“How long?” Hyunjin whispers.

Changbin knows what his kitten wants to ask.

_For how long we were separated? How long I’ve been forced into fighting? How long I’ve suffered?_

“Almost one entire month”

Hyunjin stays in silence for quite a few seconds and he could ask anything, he could demand answers from Changbin, be mad at him, cry or just scream. But he doesn’t do that.

“I met… a fox...” He calmly says but his hands are shaking. Changbin has to hold the strong feeling that forces itself out of his throat and eyes.

“He’s fine. His family came and Jeongin is with his owners now”.

Hyunjin slowly moves his head to Changbin’s side and takes a deep breath.

“I’m relieved,” he says, relaxing his shoulders.

Changbin looks at him in silence and tries to hold the tears, but it’s almost impossible. He can feel relief spreading through his tired body, sadness for all that happened, regret and a good amount of accumulated despair.

“I’m sorry, Jinnie… I’m so sorry…” He says, laying his head at Hyunjin’s lap. He does it carefully and hides his face at the sheets covering the kitten’s body. Changbin can feel the way Hyunjin tries to squeeze his hands, but the kitten is too weak to even do that.

They both cry. Hyunjin in silence, eyes closed and hands shaking while Changbin can’t hold the sobs and just lets all his emotions overflow his tired body.

***

**_Hyunjin_ **

Jeongin is the first one to arrive. The true colour of the fox’s eyes is close to melted honey, not the gold that Hyunjin got used to stare back in the darkness. Here, with natural light and happiness surrounding him, Jeongin looks excited and his orange fur is as bright as his smile. His owner is with him, Seungmin, a young human with a tender smile and brown hair.

The little fox is excited and talkative, his eyes sparkling with joy while he talks with Changbin and makes fun of Seungmin, and it’s almost like nothing happened to him. However, when Hyunjin stares deeply at the honey eyes, he can see all the sadness and brokenness that he knows too well. Jeongin will need to learn how to live with all those memories and flashbacks from the fighting, and this is a difficult thing to do.

“I’m so happy to see you well,” Jeongin says while eating some chips from the bag that he holds. Changbin and Seungmin went out to buy “healthy food” for them to eat, but Hyunjin knows that this was just an excuse for the hybrids to have a more private conversation.

“I’m not that well, as you see” Hyunjin tries to joke, but he ended sounding sadder than expected.

Jeongin stays in silence for a few seconds and Hyunjin needs to close his eyes again, they’re too sensitive to light, yet. Soon, he heard the sobs.

“I… I’m-…” Jeongin tries to say, but his voice cracks. Hyunjin forces himself to open his eyes again and slowly reaches for Jeongin’s shaky hands. He cups Jeongin’s fingers with his own while reading between the lines.

“That is not who you are. You’re not a killer, Jeongin”.

“But… but I…”

“You needed to survive, and the drug… it was too strong, we didn’t even know what was happening”

That thought already crossed Hyunjin’s mind, back when he started his life with Changbin. He thought that he was bad, he was a killer and a bad kitten, for all that he has done, but, when his mental doctor explained to him that he wasn’t guilty and all that he has done was because he was forced, he was able to overcome that thought. Hyunjin knows that this is afflicting Jeongin’s heart as well and he feels that he needs to make things clear for the fox.

Jeongin stays in silence for a few more seconds and he tries to wipe the tears away, but they keep coming. It will take some time to stop them, Hyunjin knows that too well.

“How you…”

“I had Changbin, back then. He helped me and took me to a mental doctor. They’re nice and really helpful”

“Mental doctor?”

“They have another name, but I can’t remember now. If you feel that everything is too much for you, you need to talk to Seungmin and ask him to take you to one of those doctors. And, Jeongin… You’re gentle and loving. Don’t let these thoughts convince you otherwise. We’re not guilty of anything… The monsters are those men that did this to us and all those hybrids, not we”.

They stare at each other for some time until suddenly, Jeongin hugs Hyunjin in silence. The kitten can hear a tiny “thank you” whispered close to his ears right before the door from the room opens and all his friends arrive.

Felix starts crying and sobbing at the moment he enters the room. Chris has to hold his kitten to prevent him from jumping at Hyunjin while Minho just smiles at him. It’s a wonderful smile, the prettier that Hyunjin ever saw at Minho’s face. Jisung is crying, of course, he would cry his eyes out while sitting close to Hyunjin. Chris is silently watching the messy scene before him, alongside Changbin, but he doesn’t stop smiling as well. Hyunjin looks at Chris and they exchange a silent look, the phrase hanging in the air above them.

_Thank you._

Changbin just smiles and Hyunjin can notice how his owner’s shoulders are more relaxed, the look in his eyes brighter… Hyunjin loves Changbin. He loves him with all his heart, mind and body, he is sure now. The kitten was drugged and beaten up for more than ten days and all that he could think was Changbin, _Changbin, Changbin, Changbin._

Hyunjin _loves_ Changbin.

***

**_Changbin_ **

They spend the day together.

Apparently, Jeongin was automatically included at the hybrid’s little friendship circle. Felix started talking about games with the fox, Hyunjin was smiling at him with those happy moon eyes of his and Minho was already acting like he was the older brother of the group, forcing Jeongin to eat fruits and drink a lot of water. They get scolded by one of the nurses when she entered the room and saw that Felix and Jeongin were jumping excited at one side of the bed where Hyunjin was laying while talking and playing games.

Changbin couldn’t do much rather than observe the little circle of friends talking and spending time together. Chris, Jisung and Jeongin’s young owner stayed as well and they just took their time talking and getting to know Seungmin.

Watching everyone together was nice. Hyunjin was still tired but Changbin could notice that all that he wanted was to be with his friends, so he just stayed quiet while the day passed by.

The day ended with a good feeling, Changbin feels a warmth inside his heart and that gentle happiness that comes after a good day.

“You look happy,” Hyunjin says, while Changbin takes his time adjusting the armchair where he’s going to sleep, beside Hyunjin’s bed. A soft smile spreads Changbin’s lips and he sits at the bed, close to Hyunjin, taking care to not move the kitten.

“I am happy” He takes one of Hyunjin’s hands in his and draws gentle circles at the skin. The kitten lets out a soft giggle and Changbin’s smile gets wider.

“I hope we have some peace after this” Hyunjin says, looking at Changbin’s fingers.

Changbin feels a sting in his heart and he can’t avoid sounding a little bitter.

“I’ll never drink anything again, for sure”

“No need to do that, you know?” Hyunjin softly says.

“No, I already decided. I didn’t drink much before all happens, it won’t be difficult”.

Outside of the open window, the orange light from the sunset is already fading to a darker navy blue while the usual night sounds start to echo at the dark streets. Changbin can feel Hyunjin’s eyes glued at his face but he can’t face them, so he just stares at the pale fingers intertwined with his own.

He was so scared and so sad, he lost all the motivation at the second he lost Hyunjin. Right now, with Hyunjin by his side, he can feel the beating of his heart again, life has colours again, the food is tasty and the sun is brighter. The kitten will need a lot of time to recover himself, but he’ll be okay, Changbin knows that. If Hyunjin was able to survive all those horrible days, he’ll recover himself and be happy again, for sure.

The time that they spent apart from each other made Changbin realise that he’ll never be able to go back to who he used to be before he met Hyunjin. The kitten became his world, his everything, and nothing is the same without Hyunjin.

“I love you. You know that, right?” Hyunjin suddenly says, a whisper at Changbin’s ears.

Changbin smiles and squeezes the skinny fingers from Hyunjin’s hands.

“I love you more”.

==========================================================================================

**_Hyunjin_ **

Almost three months after the surgery, Hyunjin is nearly recovered. He needs help to properly walk and sometimes he feels pain, but he’s fine. He’s with his friends and Changbin, so he’s happy again.

He spends a lot of time at the hospital, taking physiotherapy sessions and doing medical exams. At the beginning of the treatment, he had to stay at the hospital for almost two weeks just laid at the bed and it was really boring, but Changbin helped him and the time that he spent with him was calm and healing. His friends visited him frequently as well, which was really fun.

He can’t dance anymore. Well, not until the doctors have complete certainty that he’s totally recovered, so he spends his time at home, going to the physiotherapy sessions and to the studio with Changbin, searching for new hobbies and reading.

They don’t know what happened with those men from the fighting ring, they only know that the police and the prosecutors are working on it. Hyunjin doesn’t really want to hear anything from the case, he just wants to start over again and concentrate on his current life.

Changbin decided to take self-defence classes and he started learning a fighting style, too. Felix goes with him to the classes and they’re trying to convince Minho to go with them as well, but, according to Minho’s words, he’s too lazy for that. Changbin returned to the studio too, helping Chris and Jisung producing more songs. He started singing as well, but only Hyunjin knows about this, Changbin sings only when he’s at home.

The old feeling that Hyunjin used to have, that his life with Changbin was just a dream, faded away. He doesn’t feel like that anymore, he knows that living with Changbin and his friends is a reality, and he’s grateful for that.

They both have nightmares, still. Sometimes is Changbin and others is Hyunjin, but now they talk about it, they try to comfort each other right away after waking up in the middle of the night. Hyunjin knows that they’re only dreams and that nothing will happen again, he’s more at peace now, but… Changbin is not. He still has fear inside his heart and the kitten is doing his best to help him.

Hyunjin remembers his dream about his parents as well. Almost every day, he remembers the voice of his mother and the way that his father’s presence brought him a sense of safety. He had loving parents but somehow, he ended being separated from them. He wants to talk with Changbin about it, but he feels that it’s not the right moment, not yet. So, he’s waiting.

Right now, he can only think about one thing: the ocean.

It’s big and blue, a deep blue, and it shines under the sun. It’s beautiful, Hyunjin can’t take his eyes out of it.

The waves that crash at the sand and the rocks, the rhythm of the water, the sound of the seagulls at the sky… everything is so peaceful. It’s more than he imagined.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Changbin says, still looking at the water. They just arrived and it's still dawn, the first hours of the morning lighting up the beach.

“It’s… It’s wonderful” Hyunjin doesn’t have words to describe what he’s feeling. Just wonderful isn’t enough, but he can’t think of another word.

He’s still staring at the way the waves crashes at the sand when he feels cold fingers touching his cheek. Changbin turns Hyunjin’s face to him and he’s smiling, glossy eyes staring deep at Hyunjin’s soul.

“You’re more beautiful than this”

Hyunjin giggles at that, Changbin is always so dramatic and too romantic most of the time. He’s about to make a joke about that when Changbin suddenly pushes him a little down and kisses him. It’s not a heated kiss or anything, just lips against lips and love exchanged between the two. The kitten smiles and hugs Changbin by the waist while taking a deep breath. He likes that feeling, comfort, safety, happiness, _love._

When they part from each other, both are smiling and the sun is already high in the sky.

“There are no more darkness” Hyunjin whispers, close to Changbin’s lips.

“No more darkness?”

“No. Just you.”

Changbin giggles.

“Just me?”

“You’re my light. And this,” Hyunjin says, gesturing with his hand, pointing at the tiny space between them, “Is what has left after all that darkness goes away. I love you, Binnie”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this. I'm really happy that I could write something deeper, to change a little. I hope you guys enjoyed the end of this adventure from Changjin! ♥ They suffered a lot, but I promise you guys that this is the end for their suffering haha [maybe]
> 
> Also, FOX JEONGIN IS CUTE, HE'S BABY, I HAD TO WRITE HIM LIKE THAT! btw, Seungmin doesn't talk too much here [i'm sorry] but I'm planning on including him, as well as Jeongin, on the next adventures! ♥
> 
> Now, I need a little help from you guys! What adventure does y'all want to read with these kitties and their owners now? Please, let me know! I'll be glad to write! And I mean it, please, tell me what y'all want ♥
> 
> I'm really happy with all the comments and kudos, the feedback that y'all are giving me is so good! Thank you so much! ♥
> 
> Don't forget to make a request and see you in the next adventures!
> 
> Thank you so much for reading this! I appreciate if you leave Kudos and comments, feedback is always important for who writes ♥

**Author's Note:**

> I really hope that you guys enjoyed this part. I promise chapter two is coming soon!
> 
> As y'all already notice, I wanted to write something deeper this time. I wanted to explore Changjin feelings for each other and the friendship that connects the cat hybrids and the owners. I enjoy writing explicit things, but I enjoy writing deeper and cute things as well! I have a request for Changjin that's explicit, and I'm already working on it as well, so, please, be patient with me!
> 
> So, I'll ask you guys to take this journey with me and learn more about the friendship and love that connects all these characters ♥
> 
> Btw, thank you so much for all the comments and kudos that this series has been receiving, you guys are amazing. Every day I'm happy because all the love that you guys are showing to this series! ♥ It makes me really happy people enjoy this series and my writing. Really.
> 
> Feel free to make requests, I'll be glad to write them!
> 
> Thank you so much for reading this! I appreciate if you leave Kudos and comments, feedback is always important for who writes ♥


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